Crescendo Appare is a sculpture by the Italian artist Mario Merz, located at the moll de la Barceloneta in the Barceloneta neighborhood of Barcelona. The installation consists of 21 calligraphic numbers in neon set inside iron squares on the ground, stretching across 160 meters. These numbers represent the Fibonacci sequence, a mathematical pattern described by a medieval mathematician to show a law of natural growth, where each number is the result of the sum of the two previous numbers starting from 0 and 1.
The work was inaugurated on July 21, 1992, just days before the start of the Olympic Games. It was part of the exhibition Configuracions Urbanes, organized by the city of Barcelona, which featured eight works by six foreign artists, one from Madrid, and one from Catalonia. The project followed a route through the neighborhoods of Ribera, Barceloneta, and Port Vell, and was directed by art critic Gloria Moure.
Since its opening, the installation has suffered problems from vehicle passage and the placement of circus carpets on top of it. In 2004, the installation was completely renovated with new numbers, a new electrical system, and drainage to remove water from condensation. It also received thicker glass, but despite these updates, the numbers continue to break.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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